Description
Book SynopsisFirst full archaeological study of the urban environment of Norwich when its power was at its height. Norwich was second only to London in size and economic significance from the late Middle Ages through to the mid-seventeenth century. This book brings together, for the first time, the rich archaeological evidence for urban households and domestic life in Norwich, using surviving buildings, excavated sites, and material culture. It offers a broad overview of the changing forms, construction and spatial organisation of urban houses during the period, ranging across the social spectrum from the large courtyard mansions occupied by members of the mercantile and civic elite, to the homes of the urban "middling sort" and the small two- and three-roomed cottages of the city's weavers andartisans. The so-called "age of transition" witnessed profound social and economic changes and religious and political upheavals, which Norwich, as a major provincial capital, experienced with particular force and intensity; domestic life was also transformed. The author examines the twin themes of continuity and change in the material world and the role of the domestic sphere in the expression and negotiation of shifting power relationships, economic structures and social identities in the medieval and early modern city.
Trade ReviewChris King has written a fine book on the 'Fine City'. [...] King's engagement with existing studies is exemplary, disseminating hitherto unpublished archaeological work by the Norwich Survey, making conscientious use of historical studies on Norwich's rich documentation, writing fluently about historical sources such as the 1570 census of the poor and post-1660 hearth tax returns. * CULTURAL AND SOCIAL HISTORY *
Enjoyable, dense, wide-ranging and well-illustrated, the book admirably fulfils the author's aim of contributing to current debates around the character of the 'great rebuilding' phenomenon in the context of the social and cultural transformation of England's second city. -- MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY
This book is essential reading for everyone with a serious interest in the history of Norwich. It is the first publication to offer a comprehensive overview of the subject, and it does a good deal more besides. -- Norfolk Archaeology
Table of ContentsChapter 1: Urban rebuildings, urban transitions Chapter 2: Norwich, 1350-1660: continuity and change in an English provincial city Chapter 3: Medieval merchants' houses, c.1350-1540 Chapter 4: Early modern merchants' houses, c.1540-1660 Chapter 5: The urban elite: domestic space, social identity and civic authority Chapter 6: Medieval houses and the urban 'great rebuilding' Chapter 7: Houses of the 'middling sort': buildings and the use of space Chapter 8: Housing the urban poor and immigrant communities Conclusions
